The present application claims the benefit of provisional patent application Ser. No. 63/402,862 filed on 8/31/2022, provisional patent application Ser. No. 63/429,764 filed on 12/2/2022, and provisional patent application Ser. No. 63/443,160 filed on 3/2/2023, the disclosures of which are hereby incorporated by reference in their entirety.
Detailed Description
The embodiments set forth below represent the necessary information to enable those skilled in the art to practice the embodiments and illustrate the best mode of practicing the embodiments. Upon reading the following description in light of the accompanying drawing figures, those skilled in the art will understand the concepts of the disclosure and will recognize applications of these concepts not particularly addressed herein. It should be understood that these concepts and applications fall within the scope of the disclosure and the accompanying claims.
At present, cold chain transport for food, pharmaceutical products or any product requiring temperature control for delivery is done by three temperature or refrigerated trucks and vans that are retrofitted with compressor-based systems that cool or freeze the entire segmented area of the truck and must be constantly operated to maintain the temperature inside the truck, whether one gallon of milk or one pint of ice cream on the truck, you need to cool or freeze the entire space. The compressor-based refrigerated trucks and the three-temperature trucks or vans must be penetrated from the outside to place the cooling platform of the compressor-based system inside the truck or van, which renders the vans or trucks warranty ineffective. Furthermore, to operate a three temperature truck, you must use spacers between temperature zones to maintain temperature. The separation of the spaces requires you to divide the order with the goods into two or more zones. The compressor-based system consumes too much power of the system to place it in or on a pure electric vehicle in a manner that does not significantly reduce the vehicle's range.
An alternative to compressor-based cooling is to use a passive cooling product (such as gel packs or dry ice) to cool the product packed in a box or handbag, which is a very expensive process in terms of both labor and materials. The use of compressors, as well as passive cooling and freezing, can cause significant environmental damage due to the continued operation of the refrigerant, materials, or trucks and compressors to maintain temperature.
Retrofitting a transportation vehicle with a thermoelectric active cooling and freezing handbag with on-demand cooling and sustainable refrigerants eliminates the need for a penetrating van/truck and has minimal impact on the range of the electric vehicle.
The ability to use mobile and transportable containers using thermoelectric cooling for placement in a transport vehicle (e.g., van, car, train, plane, ship) includes the ability to use the same container for transport between physical centers (e.g., MFCs), stores, and mobile vehicles, up to a residence, apartment, or business. This would also include all IOT capabilities that command, control and monitor the temperature of each container in transit. In some embodiments, this is used in EV vehicles or combustion engine vehicles, and our handbags are powered using the power supply of the vehicle and/or the battery pack to be recharged by the vehicle.
The last mile of food distribution requires the use of vans or similar vehicles for temperature controlled transportation of perishable foods. To achieve temperature control, refrigerated or frozen handbags installed in vans (e.g., cargo trucks) or box trucks may be used.
These handbags use an active heat pump to extract heat from the enclosed chamber and discharge it into the surrounding ambient environment. When such a purse is in a closed location, such as a distribution truck, hot air may be removed from the van to enhance the handling of the purse.
These handbags require electrical power during transportation to maintain the food safety requirements of perishable consumer products. The electrical system required to reach (and/or maintain) the correct temperature should meet certain expectations for the operation of the bag.
Figures 1A-1D illustrate the utilization of a portable stand-alone refrigeration or freezing system in combination with integrated automated control and monitoring.
Fig. 2 and fig. 3A and 3B illustrate example embodiments of an active cooler according to embodiments of the present disclosure.
Fig. 4 illustrates a system including an active cooler according to some embodiments of the present disclosure.
For more details, the interested reader is referred to U.S. provisional patent application Ser. No. 62/953,771, entitled THERMOELECTRIC REFRIGERATED/FROZEN PRODUCT STORAGE AND TRANSPORTATION COOLER, U.S. patent application Ser. No. 17/135,420, entitled THERMOELECTRIC REFRIGERATED/FROZEN PRODUCT STORAGE AND TRANSPORTATION COOLER, now U.S. patent application publication No. 2021/0199353A1, and International patent application No. PCT/US2020/067172, entitled THERMOELECTRIC REFRIGERATED/FROZEN PRODUCT STORAGE AND TRANSPORTATION COOLER, now International patent publication No. WO 2021/134068. These applications are hereby incorporated by reference in their entirety.
Figure 5 shows an example of a handbag as discussed herein. Figure 6 shows that different types of handbags can be used with a refrigerator or freezer type. Figure 7 shows an exploded view of a handbag comprising a thermoelectric unit as discussed herein.
Fig. 8 shows a standard three-temperature truck for distribution. This may involve several different cooling systems that must be carried around, whether or not they are currently needed.
Fig. 9 shows a delivery truck that does not require a refrigeration system or requires less refrigeration. In this embodiment, the handbag provides an appropriate temperature for the various food items. This may make the truck more efficient in a number of ways. This also increases the configurability. This can be easily achieved if the whole truck is required to reach a specific temperature, compared to a standard truck. These trucks may include charging capability or other amenities.
Figures 10 and 11 illustrate various ways in which the ventilation duct may be integrated into the luggage rack. Additional heat in the handbag can be removed by actively plumbing the hot exhaust air to the external environment. The central ventilation fan provides airflow to the outside. A single handbag may be connected to the central ventilation fan using flexible tubing. The connection may involve a spring loaded mechanism to push the bag against the compressible gasket and seal the tubing to the bag at the vent. When the handbag position is unoccupied, a damper can be used to reduce air flow back into the van.
The pipes may also be integrated into the support structure of the pallet to reduce the space taken up by the pipes. The support beams of the pallet may be made hollow and the pipes may pass through these hollow channels.
To further improve the air exchange with the outside, vents may be included in the sides of the van to improve air ingress from the outside. These vents may be angled to increase the amount of air that enters as the van accelerates. The rear portion may include additional vents to enhance turbulence and air mixing inside the van.
Another way to remove heat from the handbag is to use a liquid cooling circuit. The handbag waste heat exchanger can be made of flat plates that mate with liquid cold plates that remain stationary in the van. A radiator or refrigerant chiller circuit may be used to cool the liquid.
Fig. 12 shows a circuit diagram in some embodiments. A plurality of batteries are shown connected in parallel with a connector (e.g., an anderson connector) to the rest of the circuit. There is a shunt connected to the current/voltage monitoring system between the battery and the power distribution block. The system also includes a plurality of relays and a battery charger.
Figure 13 includes a logic table for controlling individual handbags. An example is shown with eight handbags. The first line shows the case where all handbags are cooled to the target temperature. Necessary at start-up. The next line shows that once the target temperature is reached, power is cut off to all handbags and the cover is closed. The third row shows that if the closure of the selected handbag is open and the temperature is below the threshold temperature, power is turned on to the selected handbag. The time to cool down to the threshold temperature is calculated and power is applied until the threshold temperature is reached.
Fig. 14 illustrates a shelving system and handbag placement in accordance with some embodiments.
In some embodiments, a power distribution system includes a plurality of rechargeable lithium ion batteries sized to meet power requirements of a plurality of thermoelectric handbags, a power cable sized for rated power, a power connector, a shunt, a power distribution block having a polarity connection point, a current and voltage monitoring system, a polarity relay, and/or an active thermoelectric handbag.
In some embodiments, the power distribution system includes a heating system that monitors battery temperature and provides heat to the battery to improve normal use in cold environments.
In some embodiments, the power distribution system includes insulating material to capture heat during use and allow for higher ambient differential temperatures in selected areas for battery placement when not in use.
In some embodiments, the power distribution system includes heating elements and/or fans that are appropriately positioned relative to the battery system, and wherein current is supplied through the heating elements to maintain circulated air with a relatively high differential ambient temperature.
In some embodiments, the power distribution system includes a processor and tuning logic for optimizing charging time and power distribution during conditions of adjusting the handbag by cooling the temperature of the active handbag to a desired target temperature, maintaining the temperature during idle conditions, and maintaining a threshold temperature during active use.
In some embodiments, the shelf system includes a handbag docking connector, power distribution wiring, expandable shelves for improved access to the bags.
In some embodiments, a power distribution system includes a polar rechargeable lithium ion battery sized to meet power requirements of a polar thermoelectric handbag, a power cable sized for rated power, a power connector, a shunt, a power distribution block with a polar connection point, a current and voltage monitoring system, a polar relay, and an active thermoelectric handbag.
In some embodiments, the system further comprises a heating system that monitors the battery temperature and provides heat to the battery to improve normal use in cold environments.
In some embodiments, the system further includes an insulating material to capture heat during use and allow for higher ambient differential temperatures in selected areas for battery placement when not in use.
In some embodiments, the system further comprises a heating element and a fan suitably positioned relative to the battery system, and wherein current is supplied through the heating element to maintain circulated air having a relatively high differential ambient temperature.
In some embodiments, the system further includes a processor and tuning logic for optimizing charging time and power distribution during conditions of adjusting the handbag by cooling the temperature of the active handbag to a desired target temperature, maintaining the temperature during idle conditions, and maintaining a threshold temperature during active use.
In some embodiments, the shelf system includes a handbag docking connector, power distribution wiring, and/or an expandable shelf for improving access to the handbag.
In some embodiments, it is desirable to insulate the truck, penetrate the exterior, run multiple compressor systems inside and outside the truck, place a support structure to support the weight of the cooling system and place a bulkhead divider to separate the multiple zones. Figure 15 shows a single truck and two zones created using a conventional compressor cooling and transportation process.
Figure 16 illustrates an example use of the disclosed handbag. The use of these handbags allows for multi-temperature cold chain transport and retrofitting of electric or gas powered vehicles.
In some embodiments, an "on demand" system allows only what needs to be cooled at a desired temperature when cooling is needed, all limited to actively cooled handbags. By using "on demand" cooling, each bag or order can be powered down after each stop, thereby saving energy and extending the range of the vehicle. This example can be seen in fig. 17. This example uses some assumptions such as SS power per bag (W) =85W (low power operation, maintained <10°f), power per bag at full power=135W, total energy usage (kW-hr) =3.9 kW, ev truck kWh/mi=2.0, total actual mileage reduction estimate (miles) =2.0.
The entire order for all temperatures of a customer can be placed on one shelf or section of a truck using a temperature controlled handbag placed on a shelf that has been retrofitted with a touch power source that can power the handbag during transport or when stopped. This is shown in fig. 18. The contact power supply may be operated by a separate rechargeable battery system or a vehicle battery system.
The handbag liner can be placed in a handbag to assist in carrying items in and out of the van, and in addition, can be used to move handbags in and out of the van per order, which liner will be used in areas where it is desired to dispense multiple handbags of orders on a trolley or trolley to an area such as an office building or apartment building, or where the distance from the dispensing vehicle to the discharge point is a longer distance. An example of this is shown in fig. 19.
A refrigerated (Refer) truck is converted to a three or more temperature truck with a purse, you can retrofit an existing refrigerated truck to a three or more temperature truck by placing power contacts and use the refrigerated purse, you can run the refrigerated purse in a deep-cooled refrigerated truck without adding a compressor system, compartmentalize the truck with a partition or spacer, and keep the truck open, which allows customers to use existing assets. An example of this is shown in fig. 20.
In some embodiments, the system uses water and CO2 to cool and freeze the bag. In some embodiments, portable actively cooled handbags may be used to pick up goods into them, temporary store, load onto vehicles, and distribute to customer gates. In some embodiments, the contact or wireless charging location is for a rack and a handbag in a shelf. In some embodiments, penetration of the exterior of the vehicle is not required. In some embodiments, IOT is used to maintain cold chain file records. In some embodiments, IOT is used to power up and down the bag when dispensing orders to reduce "on demand cooling" power. In some embodiments, the entire order of any temperature required for food safety can be stored in one section of the vehicle without the use of dividers or spacers.
In some embodiments, the integrated contacts may allow for direct connection and/or secure docking/attachment of individual battery modules to containers for self-powered applications.
These embodiments may potentially be used, but are not limited to, robotic warehouse/shelf systems where manual insertion/removal of containers is not feasible and/or desirable, manual systems requiring minimal employee interaction time, mobile dispensing platforms for expanding the secure dispensing range, and remote deployment of loading platforms/shelves. According to some embodiments of the present disclosure, these universal automated warehouse/shelf locations may be maintained at room temperature.
Some embodiments feature optional safety features to enable remote unattended unloading and/or pickup. According to some embodiments of the present disclosure, a secure local/remote dock may provide access control to the bag itself, in contrast to or in addition to access control to the contents of the bag. In some embodiments, a shelf implementation with docking/locking tracks is used according to some embodiments of the present disclosure. Further details can be found in patent application PCT/US2021/054515 filed on 10/12 of 2021, the disclosure of which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.
Those skilled in the art will recognize improvements and modifications to the preferred embodiments of the present disclosure. All such improvements and modifications are considered within the scope of the concepts disclosed herein and the claims that follow.